Investment Project: Describe
Describe the investment project. Be sure to provide sufficient detail to give the loan committee a firm sense of the parameters of the activity, the need for it, and what financial metrics are relevant for determining success. In other words, what do you propose to do, where, what marketplace need will it fill, and how will you measure success?
Feedback from Instructor:
Good discussion of your proposed project. What specific metrics are you going to use to measure success? You did not provide a detailed list or rationale for your metrics.
Investment Project: Resources
Specify the resources the project will require and where these resources will come from. In addition to noting the amount of the loan you are requesting, you should also consider human resources, facilities, government approvals, intellectual property, access to natural resources, and other resources that might be required to carry out the project.
Feedback from Instructor:
You did not provide any budget to discuss your investment amount. You needed to provide specific dollar costs or estimates of costs. Upon what did you base your investment amount? You provided limited analysis to support how you derived the required amount. You really need more financial analysis.
Investment Project: Time Frame
Time frame. When will the project start, what is the anticipated economic life of the proposed expansion, and how will you decide if, when, or how to exit? Justify your choices with appropriate financial metrics.
Feedback from Instructor:
This section lacks real specifics. You need a more precise timeline, supported with specific detail derived from cited research. When will it finish? What are your specific metrics to measure success? Exit strategy? How did you come up with $1 billion in sales? That is significant.
Justification: Why Now
Why is now a good time for this investment given the global context? Justify your response, citing specific external factors such as trade regulations, foreign currency considerations, or trends in foreign direct investment that might affect business financial decisions.
Feedback from Instructor:
Is China appropriate now given the current economic and political situation?
Justification: Strategic Fit: Priorities
How does the investment align with the companys organizational and financial priorities? Support your argument with evidence from company reports and financial statement analysis designed to persuade the lender that the investment is a good strategic fit for your company.
Feedback from Instructor:
You really needed to go into greater depth here describing how the proposed expansion fits Nordstrom’s strategy. You start well, but need more research-supported analysis and discussion, especially involving the companys reports and financial statement analysis.
Justification: Strategic Fit: Microeconomic
How does the project fit within the global microeconomic environment? Support your response with evidence. For example, would the expansion tap unmet demand for the companys key products or services or fill a new niche? How do you know?
Feedback from Instructor:
You do not address specific microeconomic factors like supply and demand for your product which is key elements for any product when reviewing the microeconomics involved. You need greater use of accurate application of economic concepts.
Justification: Strategic Fit: Comparative Advantage
How does the project build on the organizations core competencies and comparative advantage? For example, does the company have a strategic advantage from intellectual property, regional expertise, suppliers, or organizational structure?
Feedback from Instructor:
This section starts satisfactorily, but needs more discussion of Nordstrom’s comparative advantage versus competitors, especially when it some to the new market that you are proposing. What specifically does Nordstrom do better than its competitors?
